Long Weekend

Hooray for the long weekend! For the first time in who knows how long, I have a three day weekend from both jobs. It has been one of those long, tired weeks for me. I worked at SBux every night, then watched DNC speeches and got to bed late all week. No sewing for me this week but I plan to change that as soon as I finish my coffee (today's brew is Starbucks Pike Place Roast).

Also, three very dear people in my life had surgery this week. Becky of quiltingbooklady.blogspot.com had hip replacement surgery on Wed. She is doing good and would love it if you'd hop on over there and send her get well wishes. My mom had her second knee replacement surgery on Thurs. She is doing good and hopefully will be going home tomorrow. My grandma had bypass surgery on Thurs. and is doing fine. I am glad that everyone is doing well. Too much worrying with everyone having surgery in the same week. I figure that August must be National Body Part Replacement month--I'm glad I am not among the celebrants.

OK off to sew. I hope to get something done and posted so stay tuned...

Fay is visitng from Florida

Well I'm all wound up and can't sleep for two reasons. 1. we did coffee tastings all night at SBux and I think I had a few too many and 2. I drove (crawled) home in a blinding rainstorm. Bands of rain from Tropical Storm Fay were passing through ATL all day and it started raining a flood right when we were closing SBux.

Becky wanted an update and bad blogger me, I didn’t post all weekend. Not quite sure where the weekend went. Friday night was the big sale at Sweet Home Quilt Co. I think we were the most lively and loud group in Conyers that night. Karin, Cindi, Carol, Sarah, and a few Crows and lots of other quilters were there buying jelly rolls, layer cakes, patterns, books, and yardage.

I bought backing for my “Firecracker” quilt and some miscellaneous neutrals (quilter’s logic rule #8: buy good neutrals when you see them because you always need neutrals). Also bought a couple of patterns and some stuff that was not on sale. I hope Melisa & her staff had fun because we all sure did. I hope Melisa recovered from this weekend also...

Saturday, I lazed around a bit and then pieced backings and put borders on some quilt tops (two of my least favorite things to do). This seemed to take all day and that’s about all I got done.

Sunday, worked at SBux the usual long Sunday shift, went to the grocery store, was in shock by the rise in prices and by how much money one can spend on groceries and still not have any food (I haven’t been to the store in awhile—just skating by on PB&J’s, eggs and toast, and yogurt/granola), and that about did me in for the day/night.

I think this is going to be a long week if today was any indication--an icky Monday kind of Monday. I can't wait for the long holiday weekend. Hurry up Friday.

Goodies in the Mail

The giveaway from Jodi at This That and The Other came in the mail! Thanks again Jodi!

What great stuff. The saltwater taffy is to die for. In the back is a way cute little homemade bag, perfect for keeping hand sewing stuff by your side and away from kitty paws.

Speaking of kitty paws, Morpheus is feeling left out of blog posts.

Here is Morph waiting for me to sit on the couch and watch the Olympics with him.

Tomorrow is the big midnight madness sale at Sweet Home Quilt Co. I'm going to get my list and my "Bad Melisa" bag ready to go.

Sewing Sunday

I am really enjoying my three day weekend off of Sbux--no getting up at 5:30AM on Sunday woo hoo! Yesterday's sewing group was tons of fun--I took my camera and then forgot to take photos. It was great catching up with everyone; I think I did more visiting than sewing. I started on another jelly roll quilt out of the book Jelly Roll Quilts. I hope Amanda lets her LQS (The Quilt Room) owners know that every quilter in metro ATL has this book or is getting this book LOL!

I also made this table runner yesterday--really quick and takes one charm pack.

The fabric is "Winter" by Moda.

I also made this bag last night while watching the Olympics.

Also used a Moda charm pack. I'm calling this my "Bad Melisa" bag and using it for Sweet Home Quilt Co. trips.

I reluctantly took a break from sewing today to do some house cleaning. The cats enjoying watching the whole sweep--Swifter--mop triathlon event but not the individual vacuuming finals.

(Note: using Olympic terminology for chores doesn't make it any more fun)

I mentioned on Friday's post that I was looking forward to reading the Sunday NY Times. Look who has a huge article in the Arts and Leisure section. It was so nice of those folks at the Times to have one of the cutest and funniest men in the world in today's paper.

I *heart* Jon Stewart. OK off to do more sewing!

Living it up in the ATL

Oooo I'm so excited, I'm doing a happy dance. I have all weekend off from Sbux so I am going to really live it up and sew all weekend. I also plan on leisurely reading the NY Times on Sunday and hang out with the cats. Ha ha--do I know how to party or what? Tomorrow is my sewing group so I get to find out how all my teacher friends are doing on their first week back to school (y'all have been quiet in blogland!!!), and find out how many more quilts Karin finished this week.

When I got home from work, I finished sewing the rows together on my "Firecracker" quilt and gathered stuff up for tomorrow. Here's the quilt without borders (I have to wait for the yardage to appear at Sweet Home Quilt Co).

The quilt is really not a trapezoid--it's twin size so hard to photograph well. And that's not a cat applique--that's Gomez (Mega-bux). I think he is making sure the points match...

Stella couldn't be left out. She is so cute you just can't stand it!

I love how this quilt is coming along. It's 2 charm packs (Moda's Civil War Crossing), a new Little Quilts shirting for the background, and 2 accent fabrics. S. noticed that it was 1800s repro fabric in a contemporary setting (scary--he's been around quilting too long!) Next up is another jelly roll quilt. I'll post progress later this weekend.

Edgar Poe says "a half-yard of fabric covered with cat hair coming right up". Gee thanks Edgar!

Recent Reads

I'm a trying to get through the Battle of New Orleans in this book:

so I can start this book:

Hurry up Lafitte & Jackson--the war is over already! I *must* find out what happens to Bella and Edward!!!

I wanted to read 1812 because it's kind of a lesser known war--sandwiched between the Revolution and Civil War and I wanted to learn more about it. The book is OK--not the best history reading. The author veered off into colloquialisms a bit too much and there was an over-use of exclamation points for a history book in my opinion. During the battle of Fort McHenry, the author takes a leisurely stroll through Clicheville in describing the inspiration for "The Star-Spangled Banner" but overall the book got the job done and I do know more about the War of 1812. I do recommend it if you want to know more about this period in history; it's not dry and a quick read.

A book I highly recommend is Franklin & Winston by Jon Meacham.

This is one of the best books I've read this summer. It is both a biography of these great men and a history of World War II. It is an engaging and fascinating look at the unique friendship between FDR and Churchill. The book restored my faith that (at least at one time) there were great, intelligent, thoughtful, leaders in government who cared deeply and unselfishly about everyday people.

Olympic Laziness

The cats and I are all vying for the gold metal in laziness this weekend. I think we are all tied. Yesterday, I didn't even get out of my pjs. Today, I worked a looooong shift at SBux but am back in lazy action now. Does anyone else find it ironic that during the Olympics, people spend hours watching the world's best athletes--sitting in front of the TV--which is the antithesis of fitness?????? I better rest up. Michael Phelps is swimming tonight and just watching him makes me tired. I'd post photos of cute, lazy cats but of course that would mean getting up and getting the camera..............

A Sweet Surprise!!

I was very surprised yesterday to find out I won a blog giveaway! How cool is that? It's a really cute basket of goodies from Jodi over at This That and The Other. Thanks Jodi!!!!! I love her blog--beautiful photos & great ideas. Be sure to check out her new sewing room!!!!

Jodi is making a Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt and asked quilty bloggers to send her some fabric strips. Here's the fabric I sent (some 30s fabric from a quilt I made).

Thanks again Jodi!

20 Wishes Part 2

Part 2 of my 20 wishes post. Check out Pat's list. What are your 20 wishes???

11. Spend a month traveling around England, Scotland, and Ireland with S.
12. Only work one job so I have time to volunteer at an animal rescue group and become certified/trained to rescue animals during natural disasters.
13. Go on a dogsledding trip with my dad.
14. Have the time and resources to travel, travel, travel--France, Italy, Australia & New Zealand, Alaska, Africa, NYC, Key West, the Southwest, New England--there are so many places I want to go!!!!!
15. Have dinner with Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.
16. Learn to knit socks (maybe Becky and I should take a class together). Maybe I need to finish my first project first....
17. Live in a really great Craftsman bungalow (preferably in Seattle!)
18. Go to quilt camp at Country Threads and a shopping spree at Homestead Hearth with my quilty friends.
19. I wish everyone would spay or neuter their pets and that every homeless pet would have a great, loving home.
20. I would like to thank FDR for everything he did for our country.

Random Stuff

I have had the past two nights off from SBux so I have been sewing, sewing, sewing at night. I almost have the top together for "Firecrackers"--just have to sew the rows together and I'll post a photo.

Yesterday, Edgar and Stella attempted to harness the power of invisibility. I took them to the vet for their annual shots/check up. Edgar meowed all the way there, which always makes me a nervous wreck. Once in the exam room, Edgar and Stella each found a corner of the room and curled up in a tiny ball and shut their eyes. True scaredy cats. They were probably thinking "if I can't see you, you can't see me!" Stella really tried to teleport herself through the wall to no avail. Wish I had taken a photo. They were too funny! Both were really good and both are healthy kitties.

Becky has a post about the book Twenty Wishes and she started a list of her 20 wishes. I posted a comment that one of my wishes would be that Moda would make some ugly fabric so I wouldn't *have* to buy some for awhile LOL! I'm still pondering my list but will start with some things from this post that I still wish for:

1. peace
2. our troops home
3. New Orleans to be fixed and healed and alive again
4. ice for the polar bears
5. clean air for our planet
6. a government with some sense and who really, truly cares about our country and the world and everyone in it
7. rain for the south (still in a drought although not quite so bad)

here are some new ones:
8. a better economy worldwide and here in my house (thanks governor for eliminating state employees raises again!)
9. some accountability for the hubris of the Bush administration--major accountability--in fact let's start with a look to Dante and go from there

OK I'm going to stop here for now before I get too political...

10. a really great, bright, organized sewing room (see this post for some inspiration)

What's in a name?

While surfing some quilting blogs, I found this fun site. I'll have to admit that most of this does describe me....scary!

What Gretchen Means

You are deeply philosophical and thoughtful. You tend to analyze every aspect of your life. You are intuitive, brilliant, and quite introverted. You value your time alone. Often times, you are grumpy with other people. You don't appreciate them trying to interfere in your affairs. You are wild, crazy, and a huge rebel. You're always up to something. You have a ton of energy, and most people can't handle you. You're very intense. You definitely are a handful, and you're likely to get in trouble. But your kind of trouble is a lot of fun. You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone. You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together. At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together. You are a seeker. You often find yourself restless - and you have a lot of questions about life. You tend to travel often, to fairly random locations. You're most comfortable when you're far away from home. You are quite passionate and easily tempted. Your impulses sometimes get you into trouble. You are very open. You communicate well, and you connect with other people easily. You are a naturally creative person. Ideas just flow from your mind. A true chameleon, you are many things at different points in your life. You are very adaptable. You are truly an original person. You have amazing ideas, and the power to carry them out. Success comes rather easily for you... especially in business and academia. Some people find you to be selfish and a bit overbearing. You're a strong person. You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people. You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts. You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

What's" Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

Pavlov's Zombies (or It is Melisa's Fault)

It all started last night after working at Starbucks and I was innocently checking my email . Melisa from Sweet Home Quilt Co. sent an email entitled "New Moda Collections Just Delivered!". The email seemed innocent enough. Wow new stuff at Melisa's so I opened the email.

There were pictures of fabulous charm packs jelly rolls and layer cakes.

There were descriptions of the most scrumptious new Moda fabrics.

There was Melisa writing "Trust me when I tell you that you do not want to wait too long to get in here and check out these new arrivals."

It was worse than Pavlov's dogs....I had to get-in-the-car-and-go-buy-these-fabrics-right-this-minute. I was like a zombie---must...get...fabric. But it was 12:30 AM and I had to wait until morning. I even had a list of the new fall Moda fabrics I wanted to get and what projects I wanted to make (ummm really I'm not obsessed with Moda fabric really I'm not).

OK flash forward to this morning. I zoom into the parking lot at 10:20AM. Must...get...fabric... Open the door and there she was...Melisa!!! And guess who else was there--Karin. After much laughing and accusing Melisa of being BAD BAD BAD!!! This is what I bought:

("Harvest Home" jellyroll, "Portobello Market" jellyroll, backing for "Winter" tablerunner, and "Civil War" charm packs and fabric to make the "Firecracker" quilt.)

Hop over to Karin's blog to read her account of the day and you can see a photo of Melisa with our shopping bags. (note: although Melisa looks sweet and innocent--beware!!!).

I came home and worked on my "Chic or Treat" table topper.

Ta Da--1st quilt top done for August.

And started "Firecracker" even though I had planned on working on bindings. But it was too hot here today to work on bindings. I'm loving all these new projects and stacks of jelly rolls everywhere and planning and lists. It was a fun day and it is all Melisa's fault!!!!